2013 NAIA Menís Soccer Players of the Week - No. 6

Byars and Petersson honored with NAIA men's soccer weekly awards after teams record shutout victories in conference play

October 15, 2013

By: Sam Knehans, Communications & Sports Information Intern

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Bryan Byars of Science & Arts (Okla.) has been named the NAIA Men's Soccer National Defensive Player of the Week and Nicklas Petersson of Embry-Riddle (Fla.) has been selected as the NAIA Men's Soccer National Offensive Player of the Week, the national office announced Tuesday. Byars and Petersson were chosen for their performances during the week of Oct. 7 – 13 and were selected out of a pool of conference, independent, and unaffiliated grouping award winners.

Byars, a junior goaltender from Oklahoma City, Okla., recorded a pair of shutouts for Science & Arts in Sooner Athletic Conference (SAC) play. The Drovers battled to a 3-0 win over John Brown (Ark.) and a 1-0 overtime victory over St. Gregory’s (Okla.) with Byars in net. The two shutouts, in which Byars recorded five saves, brought the Drovers to a tie for third in the SAC with a 3-1 record in conference and brought the goaltender’s career shutout total to 25—a Science & Arts program record. Byars currently ranks among the NAIA leaders in goals against per game (34th, .98).

Petersson, a senior forward from Gothenburg, Sweden, broke a 13-year-old NAIA record for assists in a regular-season game when he recorded eight assists in Embry-Riddle’s shutout victory over conference foe Ave Maria (Fla.). The Eagles forward also added four goals in the contest, giving him 16 total points, good for a tie for seventh all-time in the NAIA regular-season record book. Beyond his record-setting performance, Petersson was also a key cog in the Embry-Riddle offensive attack that led the Eagles to a shutout victory over Southeastern (Fla.), also in The Sun Conference play. He currently leads the Eagles in goals (9), assists (12) and points (30) and leads the NAIA in total assists (12), assists per game (1.33) and points per game (3.33). Petersson also ranks among the top 25 nationally in total points (14th, 30), goals per game (15th, 1) and shots on goal per game (21st, 2.44).

For a complete listing of all the national statistical leaders, click here.